Acetylene-gas generator.



No. 65|,34L Patented June l2, |900. E. P. CALDWELL.

AGETYLENE GAS GENERATOR.

(Application filed Sept. 9, 1899.) (No Model.) 3 Sheets-Sheet l.

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No. 651,34I. l Patented lune I2, |900.

E. P. CALDWELL.

ACETYLENE GAS GENRATR.

. (Application filed sept. 9, 1899.1 (No Model.; 3 Sheets-Sheet 2.

m: Nonngs Farms co. morauwo.. wnmm'ow o c No. 65L34I. Patented June l2, |900.-

' E. P. CALDWELL.

ACETYLENEAGAS GENERATOR.

(Application led Sept. 9. 1899.) (No Model.) 3 Sheets-Sheet 3.

NE nnnms PETERS co.. Puoaumc wAsnmuTuN. bv c UNITED STATESQ'PATENT OFFICE.

EDIVARD P. CALDVELL, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS, ASSIGNOR, BY MESNE AS- SIGNMENTS, TO THE GRAHAM 'ELECTRIC COMPANY, OF SAME PLACE.

Ac ETYLEN E-GAS GEN ERATo R.

SPECIFICATION forming 15a-.ft if 'Letters Patent ivo. 651,341, dated June 12', 1900. Application iled September 9i 1899. VSerial No. 729,989. (No model.)

{lb-LU whom t nmylcorwelrn: g the fixed portion of a gas-holderl adapted to Beit known that I, EDWARD P. CALDW ELL, contain water, as usual, and BY represents the a citizen of the United States, residing at Chiordinary bell or movable portion of such cago, in the county of Cook and State of Illiholder within the fixed portion.

5 nois, have invented certain new and useful C represents the gas-generatingchamber, 55

Improvements in Gas-Generators, of which located below the gas-holder, and which in the following is a specification, reference bethe construction shown is formed integral ing had to the accompanying drawings. with the fixed portion A of such holder, the

My invention relates to machines for gentwo being separated by a horizontal wall a.

ro erating gas by the union of a solid and liquid, The bottom b of the generating-chamber C is 6o and is primarily designed for the production formed on an incline, as shown, in order that of acetylene gas. v the refuse from the used carbid may be di- The invention relates to machines of the rected thereby to one side of the chamber and character shown and described in my pendbe the more readily drawn off or taken out I5 ing application, Serial No. 727,751, filed Authrough a suitable opening in the'side of the 65 gust 19, 1899, and is an improvement upon chamber. As shown, an ordinary cocky c is the devices shown and described in said apinserted through the wall of such chamber at plication. a point opposite the lower'end of such in- It has for its object to provide means for clined bottom, through which cock the refuse zo preventing the admission of carbid to the wamatter may be drawn off. 7o

ter in the generating-chamber at all times D represents a carbid-holder in the form when the cap or cover of the carbid-holder is of a large tube, the lower end of which is removed, so that if through carelessness on open and communicates with the chamber C the part of the person charging the machine through an opening in a lateral extension of 2 5 with carbid such cap or cover is not replaced the horizontal dividing-wall a. The carbid- 75 after the carbid-holder has -been filled the holder, as shown, projects a short distance machine cannot operate to generate gas which into the chamber C, so that its open lower end might escape through the uncovered carbidis below the 'surface of the water .in such holder. I accomplish this object by the chamber, by reason of which such end is 3o means shown in the drawings and hereinafsealed and to a large extent prevents gas from 8o ter fully described. entering the holder. The upper end of the That which I believe to be new will be set carbid-holder is closed by a cap or cover d, forth in the claims. which, as shown, is screw-threaded onto such t In the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 is upper end.

3 5 a vertical section through the machine, show- E E' indicate two valves within the carbid- 85 ing the position of the parts with the cap or holder, pivoted at opposite points to thewall cover of the carbid-holder removed. Fig. 2 of the holder and adapted, when swung is a similar view showing the cap or cover on across said holder, to retain such carbid as the carbid-holder and the parts in the posimay be placed therein. These valves are 4o tion they assume when the bell or movable normally held closed by two coiled springsee', 9o portion of the gas-holder has descended to each fastened at its lower end to one of said about it-s lowest position and with both valves valves and at its upper end. fastened by an in the carbid-holder opened to permit the adjusting-screw to a suitable cross-bar e4. passage of carbid to the generating-chamber. Vith the cap or cover d removed the tension 45 Fig. 3 is a similar View representing the poof the springs can readily be regulated. by 95 sition of the parts after gas has been genermeans of the adjusting-screws referred to. ated in sufficient quantity to raise the bell or These springs, as shown, are crossed, and as movable portion of the gas-holder, and Fig. the valves are opened and closed from time et is a section at line o3 .fr of Fig. 3. to time the springs, of course, are extended 5o Referring to such drawings, A represents and retracted, and such action of the springs roo produces an agitation of the carbid that surrounds them, and thus tends to loosen the mass, so that it will feed more easily to the chamber C.

F F indicate two valve-rods, attached at their upper ends to the valves E E', respectively, and at their lower ends are pivoted at e362 to two levers G G, respectively, located within the generating-chamber C. At the outer ends of the levers G G-that is, at the ends near the wall of the chamber C-there are attached by pivots ff', respectively, rods f2j'3, which rods project upward and near the upper end of the carbid-holder D enter such holder. As shown, such rodsfzf3 are suitably inclosed in a passage f4, that extends from near the upper end of the carbidholder to a lateral extension f5 of the cham` ber C, and as this extension f5 is of course filled with water a seal is provided against gas in any considerable amount escaping therethrough to the carbid-holder. To the opposite ends of the levers G G there are pivoted, respectively, by pivots g g vertical rods II Il', which each pass up through an opening in the horizontal wall d and through pipes 7L h', respectively, which pipes project beyond the surface of the water in the gasholder and serve as guides for the rods I-I Il. As shown, each of these rods is long enough to be acted upon by the top of the bell or movable portion B before such bell or movable portion reaches the limit of its descent. It will also be seen that such rods are of nnequal length, so that one so projects as to be acted upon by the bell or movable portion before the other is acted upon.

I` is a pipe open at its lower end only and communicating through an opening in the horizontal wall a with the chamber C. Near the top of said pipe is suitably secured a short section of pipe t, communicating at one end with the interior of the pipe I and depending, so that its other end is below the surface of the water in the gas-holder.

.I is a passage for gas from the gas-holder and, as shown, is formed of a piece of pipe of large diameter open at both ends and passing through suitable openings in the horizontal wall a and the inclined bottom l; of the gas-generating chamber C. Its upper end. opens int-o the gas-holder above the water therein, and its lower end opens into a receptacle K beneath the inclined bottom b, such receptacle and the passage J both being adapted to contain a supply of charcoal or other suitable matter adapted to purify the gas.

L indicates a pipe leading from the receptacle K and intended to convey the gas generated in the chamber C to the place of consumption.

In the use of this machine when the carbidvholder is to be filled the cap or cover (l thereof is to be removed for such purpose, and im-` mediately upon its removal the rods f2 f3,

the pipe t', enters the gassholder.

the upper ends of which have been bearing against such cap or cover, will be moved up ward so that such upper ends will project beyond the now open upper end of the carbid-holder, as indicated in Fig. l. They are caused to so move upward and project by the weight of the vertical rods H II bearing down upon the inner ends of the levers G G', which levers turn freely upon their pivots e2 e3, an d as such levers are not held fixed at either end until their limit of movement is reached it is evident that no downward pressure on the valves E E is brought to bear sufficient to overcome the pull of the springs e c and that therefore the valves will remain closed and no carbid be admitted to the gas-generating chamber C. It is therefore evident that until the levers G G are held fast at one end and a downward pressure is applied at the opposite end sufficient to overcome the pull of the springs the machine cannot be operated, as no carbid can be fed to the water in the generating-chamber. To place the machine in operative condition, it is necessary to secure the cap or cover d in place. vVhen such cap or cover is placed over the top of the carbid-holder, it will of course come in contact wit-l1 the projecting upper ends of the rods j'2f3, and as such cap or cover is moved down to tightly close the carbid-holder such vrodsfgf3 will of course be forced down and iirmly held. As these rods are being so forced down the vertical rods I-I II are held against upward movement by the weight of the bell or movable portion B of the gas-holder. The consequence is that a strong downward pull is exerted on the valve-rods F F, su ilieient to overcome the springs e c', allowing the valves to open and discharge a quantity of carbid into the chamber C, (see Fig. 2,) where it comes into contact with the water in such chamber, and gas, being at once evolved, rises through the pipe I and, passing through The pressure of the gas on the bell or movable part B raises such part l, and as it rises the rods H Il are also raised through the action of the springs e c on the valvesl't` E', the force of such springs closing the valves and shutting off the supply of carbid to the chamber. As the gas so evolved is drawn off forconsnmption the bell or movable part B of course descends as usual and as it nears its lowermost position comes in contact with the longer of the two vertical rods-to wit, rod II-and forces it down, the effect being, through the lever G and rod F', connected therewith, to cause the valve E to be pulled down and allow a small quantity of carbid to fall into the water in the chamber C. Now if gas in sufficient quantity be evolved by the carbid so released from the holder the pressure will of course' raise the bell or movable part l, re-

leasing the pressure on the rod I-I, allowing the spring a to close the valve E', and shutting off the supply of carbid. If, however,

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not enough carbid is delivered by the opening of the valve E to generate a sufficient quantity of gas, the further sinking of the bell or movable portion B will bring its top also in contact with the upper end of the shorter rod II' and through its lever G' and rod F will open the valve E, and both valves being thus opened will allow carbid to descend in quantity suiiicient to immediately generate a supply of gas, the pressure of which will raise the bell or movable portion B, both valves being closed, of course, by the action of their respective springs e e immediately upon the pressure on the bell being removed from the upper ends of the rods Il H.

By pivoting the levers G G to rods that are movable when the cap or cover of the carbidholder is removed and are stationary only when such cap or cov'er is in place a machine for generating acetylene gas is provided in which all danger from gas escaping in any considerable quantity through carelessness in neglecting to close the carbid-holder after filling is obviated.

That which I claim as my invention, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is-

l. In a machine for generating gas by the Y union of a solid and a liquid, the combination with the gas-holder consisting of a xed and movable portion, of a gas-generating chamber communicating with said gas-holder and adapted to contain water, a solid-containing holder communicating with the gas-generating chamber and having an opening for the insertion of solid material, a removable cover for said openin g, a valve in said holder, a lever for controlling said valve, means for operating said lever by the movement of the movable portion of the gas-holder, and a device attached to said lever and extended therefrom in position to be acted on by said cover,

to maintain said lever in operative position when said cover is in place, and to move when said cover is removed, to render said lever inoperative, substantially as and for the purpose specified.

2. In a machine for generating gas by the union of a solid and a liquid, the combination with a gas-generating chamber, of a solid-containing holder communicating with said gasgenerating chamber, a movable 'cap or cover therefor, a valve in said holder, a lever for controlling said valve, mechanism for moving said lever, and means for shifting the fulcrum of said lever when said cap or cover is removed, substantially as and for the pu rpose speciied.

In a machine for generating gas by the union of a solid and a liquid, the combination with a gas-holder consisting of a fixed and a movable portion, of a gas-generating chamber communicating with said gas-holder and adapted to contain water, a solid-containing holder communicating with the gas-generating chamber, a valve in said holder, a rod attached at one end to said valve, a pivoted lever to which said valve-rod is attached at its other end, means for operating said lever through the downward movement of the movable portion of the gas-holder, and a shiftable fulcrum for one end of said lever, substantially as and for the purpose specied.

4. In a machine for generating gas by the union of asolid anda liquid, the combination with a gas-holder consisting of a fixed and a movable portion, of a gas-generating chamber communicating with said gas-holder and adapted to contain Water, a solid-containing holder communicating with the gas-generating chamber, a valve in said holder, a rod attached at one end to said valve, a pivoted lever to which said valve-rod is attached at its other end, means for operating said lever through the downward movement of the movable portion of the gas-holder, a cap or cover for the said solid-containing holder,and means for shiftin g the fulcrum of'said lever when said cap or cover is removed so as to prevent said valve from being operated by the ordinary operation of the machine, substantially as and for the purpose specified.

5. In a machine for generating gas by the union of a solid and a liquid, the combination with a gas-holder consisting of a fixed and a movable portion, of a gas-generating chamber communicating with said gas-holder and adapted to contain Water, a solid-containing holder communicating with the gas-generating chamber, a valve in said holder, a rod attached at one end to said valve, a pivoted lever to which said valve-rod isA attached at its other end, a second rod also attached to said lever and adapted to be engaged by the movable portion of the gas-holder, and a shiftable fulcrum for one end of said lever, substantially as and for the purpose specified.

6. In a machine for generating gas by the union of a solid and a liquid, the combination with a gas-holder consisting of a iixed and a movable portion, of a gas-generating chamber communicating with said gas-holderv and adapted to contain water, a solid-containing holder communicating with the gas-generating chamber, a removable cap or cover therefor, a valve in said holder, a rod attached at one end to said valve, a pivoted lever to which the other end ofsaid valve-rod is attached, and a rod to which one end of said lever is pivoted, said rod extending to and bearing against said removable cap or cover, substantially as and for the purpose specified.

7. In a machine for generating gas by the union of a solid and a liquid, the combination with a gas-holder consisting of a fixed and a movable portion, of a gas-generating chamber communicating with said gas-holder and adapted to contain Water, a solid-containing holder communicating with the gas-generating chamber, a removable cap or cover therefor, a valve in said holder, a rod attached IOO IlO

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at one end to Said valve, a pivoted lever to which said last-11ame l rod is located, sub- Whieh the other end of said valve-rod is atstantially as and for the purpose specified. taehed, a rod to which one end of said lever 1 v is pivoted, said rod extending to and bearing ILDVARD P' CALDWELL' against said removable eap o1' Cover, and a Witnesses: passage extending from the gas-generating ALBERT II. ADAMS, chamber to the solid-containing receptacle in l C. E. PICKARD. 

